Urinary excretion of vitamin A in critically ill patients complicated with acute renal failure

Objective. Study the possible excretion of vitamin A in urine of critically ill patients complicated with acute renal failure. Patients and Methods. Nine Intensive Care Unit patients, age 71.2 ± 15.7 (mean ± SD) with acute renal failure were studied. Urinary retinol, creatinine, protein, albumin, and serum creatinine were measured. Results. All patients excreted retinol in urine; individual values ranged from 0.007 to 0.379 μmol retinol/mmol creatinine. There was no correlation of urinary retinol/creatinine ratio with serum creatinine or with urinary protein/creatinine and albumin/creatinine ratios. Conclusion. Excretion of retinol in urine may be indicative of acute renal failure in critically ill patients.